A television commentator died of a heart attack soon after Egypt’s last-minute defeat to Saudi Arabia in its final World Cup game on Monday.
Egyptian, Abdel Rahim Mohamed, a well-known and respected figure after a long career as broadcast analyst and formerly coach of a top club team, “felt emotional” during Egypt’s nail-biting clash in Group A, which ultimately ended in a 2-1 win for Saudi Arabia.
Egypt Today reported that Mohamed was affected by “the poor performance of the national team” during and after the match. At the end of the contest he was due to deliver analysis on air, but suffered a cardiac arrest and was rushed to a medical facility within Cairo’s state television center, then was taken to hospital soon after.
Doctors tried to revive him for more than 30 minutes, before he was pronounced dead.
Ahead of the tournament Egypt was considered to have a strong chance to progress to the knockout round, mainly thanks to the inspired recent form of star forward Mohamed Salah. However, Monday’s result left it with zero points from three games and a position at the foot of the group.
Mohamed, who previously coached leading Egyptian squad Zamalek, was a regular contributor to coverage on Nile Sports Channel, and was seen as one Egypt’s premier voices on soccer.
El Watan News reported that Ahmed Fawzi, a former Egypt national team goalkeeper, had been present at the studio and said Mohamed had looked “exhausted” and “affected” by the squad’s defeat.
Credit: USA Today. Photo: Egypt Today